Page 117 of Those Who Are Bound

Well, actually, he was thankful for those pricks because he had her now.

Behind the wheel, he turned the ignition, aware of her watching him with amused delight. The roar had his adrenaline spiking. His Jeep was great and practical, but there was something special about a muscle car.

As they headed off the property, she asked, “Where are you taking me? Or is it a secret?”

Jonah shook his head. “I’m taking you to City Market.”

She turned toward him. “I thought…” She paused. “I thought we were going to dinner.”

“We are.” Then he understood her confusion. “I’m taking you to an Ethiopian restaurant in the City Market, not to my apartment.” He glanced over. “You’ll see that, too, though.” The historic City Market was part of his neighborhood, the River Market.

She pointedly turned her face away to look outside, but not before he saw the color on her cheeks, giving away where her thoughts had taken her. “Oh. Well. I do love Ethiopian food; bring it on. You and I are crazy compatible. It’s a little freaky.”

Freaky… Kismet. Fate. Miracle. Whatever it was, he was all in.

Jonah parked in front of a brick building in the River Market neighborhood. He glanced over at Elliott as she studied the blue faux French doors surrounding the lower level of the former Civil War-era hotel. “That one’s mine. Top floor.”

She looked at the third floor.

“After dinner,” he said as he opened his car door.

Elliott met him on the sidewalk, her gaze turned toward the skyline. “You’d have a terrific view, depending on which one is yours.”

Jonah pointed to the corner apartment above them. “That one.”

“Wow.”

Taking her hand, Jonah walked toward the restaurant, a sense of peace coming over him. This could be their usual, their norm. Date nights, the easy companionship of walking down a street hand in hand, happy to be in each other’s presence.

“Are you worried?” she suddenly asked.

“About what?” He glanced down at her. She was looking at the passing scenery of the historic downtown, not even looking at him as she posed the question.

“That this is what they call the honeymoon phase?”

She’d said they were crazy compatible, and apparently, they had the same thought process. He hoped it was a pleasant thought, as it was for him, but her question sounded… concerned. He stayed quiet and let her finish her thought.

“That we’re both so excited to have something new that we’ll overlook anything? Every quirk is precious and adorable, but our masks are still solidly in place. That there’s something else… lurking?”

His heart thumped.Lurking?A bit ominous. He answered sincerely, “I want to be with the real person. With you. Not a façade. I thought I’ve been clear about that.”

She nodded.

He paused. “Unless you have a concern about me?”

That caught her attention, and she turned to him. “No. No, that’s not what I was talking about.”

He tilted his head, trying to read behind the storm clouds that were gathering. She denied him the opportunity to delve too deeply by turning away. If she wasn’t worried about him, then was that a statement of projection? “Is there something you want to tell me?”

Shaking her head, she shrugged. “It wasn’t specific, just a thought. You hear everyone talk about honeymoon phases and the ultimate letdown.”

“That’s what you’re accustomed to,” he said. It wasn’t much of a leap.

At the door of the restaurant, she looked back at him. “I think we’ve had this conversation.”

“We have.” He reached around her and held the door open. He assured her, “But I will keep reminding you that I’m a different man.”

Placing a hand on his stomach, she pressed forward, teasing a kiss. “That you are, Mr. Montgomery.” Before closing the distance, she backed off and practically danced into the restaurant. “It smells amazing in here!”

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